No 20 on the way.

====================================
http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20543686,00.html


BY ALICIA DENNIS

Tuesday November 08, 2011 02:30 PM EST


The Duggar Family in Scotland
Figure 8 Films
FacebookTweetJim Bob and Michelle Duggar have something to say to their critics.

"Every child deserves to be excited they are a part of life," Michelle tells PEOPLE after just revealing that she is pregnant with her 20th child. "Even when we were having our 5th and 6th [kid] … we would celebrate each pregnancy."

The reality stars have faced mounting criticism over the size of their family and the risks of Michelle's new pregnancy following the premature birth of their daughter, Josie, in Dec. 2009. But the couple insists that Josie's frightening premature birth and Michelle's life-threatening preeclampsia were not enough to convince them that 19 kids were enough.

"If we felt that way, we would have stopped back with our second birth," insists Michelle, 45, who experienced preeclampsia during her second pregnancy with twins John David and Jana, now 21. "There are many women who have experienced preeclampsia and have gone on to have more children."

"That whole mind set that you stop after a problem pregnancy isn't realistic," she continues. "You may encounter struggles along the way. You may not have a perfect pregnancy, but each child is a precious gift."

The Duggars, who star on TLC's 19 Kids and Counting, live debt free in a house they built themselves in Tontitown, Ark. They have also come under fire from those suggesting that their older kids have too much responsibility caring for the younger ones and that they don't pay enough individual attention to their kids.

"We homeschool, so we are around our children day in and day out," says Jim Bob, 46. "Because I am in real estate, I am home and can be with the children a lot. When we go to the store or run errands, we take the kids one on one and we get to spend more time individually than a lot of parents do."

Michelle, who is under the care of a high-risk pregnancy doctor, agrees: "The beauty of being in a large family," she says, "is that everyone works together as a team and it is about teaching our children responsibility."

And, she says, the family doesn't take their critics to heart.

"There are a lot of good things we can learn from our critics," she says. "We really believe we are following our faith and there are sometimes going to be people who don't agree and we aren't going to worry about the negative things stated."

"We are thankful for those out there who are happy," says Michelle, "and we are grateful for each and every gift of a child."

The Season 5 finale of 19 Kids and Counting airs Tuesday, Nov. 8 at 9 p.m. ET on TLC and the TLC special Duggars World Tour: Scotland & Ireland, premieres Sunday, Nov. 13 at 8 p.m.

The Duggars stopped their use of contraception after their unplanned second pregnancy ended in miscarriage. (CBS News) Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar announced Tuesday that they are expecting a baby, growing their clan to 20 children and two, very fertile, parents.

The reality TV stars have eschewed birth control since their unplanned second pregnancy ended in a miscarriage — a tragedy that they believe could have been caused by the birth control pill Michelle was taking at the time.

But what lies beneath the Duggars’ fecundity? It’s one thing to be skeptical of hormonal methods of contraception; it’s another to open your lives to 20 children. What do the Duggars believe about pregnancy prevention?

Here’s what Michelle Duggar, now 45, said about their beliefs on birth control during the couple’s interview with Sally Quinn in 2009:

“As we’ve read the Bible, we believe God says that children are gift and a blessing and a reward from him. And after the painful experience that we walked through in our marriage, losing the baby that we lost to the miscarriage, it broke our hearts. I think at that point was when we gave this area of our life to God and asked him to forgive us and to give us a love for children like he loves children. And from there, just receiving those gifts that God wants to give us, and so that’s our heart in it. ”

The Duggars, who live debt free in Arkansas, are both from Baptist backgrounds but are not currently affiliated with any denomination and hold Christian worship services in their home.


Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

During their announcement on the “Today” show, host Ann Curry asked whether the Duggars had plans for any more. Michelle responded:

“We’ll wait and see. We would love however many the Lord sees fit to give us.”